Welcome to Australia’s rodeo capital! Mount Isa is a remote mining town that looms large in Australian culture and boasts a surprisingly long roll call of famous sons and daughters.
Mount Isa is the regional centre of Gulf Country, 1,800km from Brisbane. The main means of getting here is on a flight into Mount Isa Airport from Brisbane, Cairns or Townsville, although if you fancy an epic train ride, you could take the overnight sleeper from Townsville.
The reason for Mount Isa’s existence is its mine. Founded in the 1920s, this is the single largest producer of silver, copper, zinc and lead in the world.
But ‘The Isa’ is also a cultural icon in this part of the Outback. Since 1959, Mount Isa has hosted a rodeo that is now the biggest in the southern hemisphere and attracts well over 30,000 visitors.
More recently, listeners of ABC’s alternative radio station Triple J will recognise Mount Isa as the venue for 2017’s ‘One Night Stand’ when 7,000 music fans attended a music festival headlined by established bands such as The Smith Street Band and San Cisco.
